Letters
The Future of the Atlantic Forest
Cardoso da Silva and Tabarelli (2000)
recently argued that about 34% of
tree species in the Atlantic forest of
northeastern Brazil would become
extinct in small forest fragments due
to dispersal failure. The authors’ ar-
guments are based on the fruit size
and gape size of their main fruit-eat-
ing birds, their putative seed dispers-
ers. Fruits larger than 15 mm would
be more sensitive to extinction be-
cause large-gaped birds, such as tou-
cans, trogons and cotingas, are usu-
ally absent in such forests. Although
it seems possible that dispersal fail-
ure may affect tree recruitment, I
wish to point out some problems in
predicting the future of the Atlantic
forest flora with the data presented.
First, most tree species have multi-
ple dispersers, so the loss of one (or
more) of them is not necessarily the
loss of all dispersal. In fact, we know
too little of who eats what and
where in the Atlantic forest to as-
sume that large fruits are dispersed
only by birds. Second, evidence that
the particular species in question
are experiencing reproductive fail-
ure (for whatever reason) is lacking.
Cardoso da Silva and Tabarelli do
not provide any evidence of plant re-
cruitment in the forest fragments of
northeastern Brazil. Chapman and
Chapman (1995) estimated that 60%
of the 25 tree species could be lost if
all frugivores were removed in an Af-
rican forest, and they presented in-
formation on plant recruitment of
the tree species affected. Third, trees
can experience reproductive failure
for many reasons. Some researchers
have found, for example, that polli-
nation is deficient in forest frag-
ments (Aizen & Feinsinger 1994).
Fourth, the authors did not mention
historical effects on the fragments
analyzed. The Atlantic forest of north-
eastern Brazil is one of the forests
most affected by selective logging,
and we know little about the origi-
4
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Volume 15, No. 1, February 2001
nal flora. Fifth, some tropical tree
species that lost their putative seed
dispersers for more than 10,000 years
BP ( Janzen & Martin 1982) are still
thriving in such forests, probably be-
cause dispersal is not a key factor
for maintaining some populations. Fi-
nally, several large fruit-eating birds
are migratory (cotingas and even tou-
cans), and their role in long-distance
seed dispersal must be mentioned
(Loiselle & Blake 1991).
There is a lot of speculation on the
role of frugivores in maintaining the
recruitment of the flora but still not
enough (good) data to predict the fu-
ture of the Atlantic forest. We agree
that some species will probably go
extinct, at least locally in particular
fragments. But to say that the reason
can be predicted in advance without
evidence on the current pattern of
tree recruitment is no better than
waving one’s arms in the air and cry-
ing wolf.
Mauro Galetti
Plant Phenology and Seed Dispersal Research
Group, Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade
Estadual Paulista (UNESP), C.P. 199, 13506–900
Rio Claro, São Paulo, Brazil, email mgaletti@
rc.unesp.br
Literature Cited
Aizen, M. A., and P. Feinsinger. 1994. Forest
fragmentation, pollination, and plant re-
production in a Chaco dry forest, Argen-
tina. Ecology 75:330–351.
Cardoso da Silva, J. M., and M. Tabarelli. 2000.
Tree species impoverishment and the fu-
ture flora of the Atlantic forest of north-
east Brazil. Nature 404:72–74.
Chapman, C. A., and L. J. Chapman. 1995.
Survival without dispersers: seedling re-
cruitment under parents. Conservation Bi-
ology 9:675–678.
Janzen, D. H., and P. S. Martin. 1982. Neo-
tropical anachronisms: the fruits the Gom-
photeres ate. Science 215:19–27.
Loiselle, B. A., and J. G. Blake. 1991. Tempo-
ral variation in birds and fruits along an el-
evational gradient in Costa Rica. Ecology
72:180–193.
Tropical Logging and Human Invasions
Selective logging is an enormously
important issue in the tropics. Each
year, nearly 6 million ha of tropical
forest are logged—an area twice the
size of Belgium—most of which is
virgin forest (Whitmore 1997). For-
est tracts currently allocated for log-
ging are at least 8–10 times larger
than the limited areas set aside as na-
ture reserves ( Johns 1997). The man-
agement or mismanagement of log-
ging operations is emerging as one of
the most vital and hotly debated is-
sues in tropical forest conservation
(e.g., Rice et al. 1997; Bowles et al.
1998; Frumhoff & Losos 1998; Gascon
et al. 1998; Sizer & Plouvier 2000).
Even ardent logging advocates ac-
knowledge that most logging op-
erations in the tropics are poorly
managed, resulting in excessive envi-
ronmental damage. In a recent issue
of Conservation Biology, Putz et al.
(2000) present an insightful assess-
ment of why so few tropical loggers
have begun to employ reduced-
impact logging (RIL) methods. These
methods are well established and
have been shown, under some cir-
cumstances, to be cheaper and more
effective than traditional logging. As
Putz et al. demonstrate, however,
RIL can actually be more expensive
than traditional logging, especially
when loggers are prohibited from
cutting on steep slopes or in wet
weather. Inadequate training for log-
gers and weak enforcement of har-
vest operations further weaken ef-
forts to promote RIL methods. Putz
et al. conclude that international as-
sistance, such as carbon-offset funds
and other financial incentives, may
be needed to promote sustainable
logging in the tropics.
Although Putz et al. (2000) make a
truly meaningful contribution to the
tropical logging debate, one key is-
sue requires further consideration:
the problem of forest invasion. Log-
gers create labyrinths of roads that

greatly increase physical access to
forests for hunters, ranchers, min-
ers, and slash-and-burn farmers. In
West Africa and Borneo, for exam-
ple, logging has led to drastic in-
creases in hunting pressure on larger
vertebrates (Wilkie et al. 1992; Ben-
nett 2000). In frontier areas of the
Amazon, Southeast Asia, and Africa,
logging has sharply increased rates
of forest colonization, often leading
to large-scale forest destruction (Rice
et al. 1997; Kaimowitz & Angelsen
1998; Laurance 1998, 1999). Logged
forests are also prone to catastrophic
wildfires, especially during droughts
(Cochrane et al. 1999; Nepstad et al.
1999).
The secondary effects of logging—
drastically increased forest access—
are actually far more destructive to
forests than is the logging operation
itself. As a result, no meaningful dis-
cussion of strategies to promote RIL
can take place without also consid-
eration of the dilemma of forest inva-
sion.
How can we stop—or at least
strongly inhibit—forest invasions af-
ter logging? I do not pretend to have
an answer to this question, but it is
one that the advocates of “sustain-
able forest management” (RIL log-
ging and related silvicultural prac-
tices) must address in a practical way
before their arguments can be taken
more seriously. Forest roads can per-
sist for decades. Can physical barri-
ers be created after logging (e.g., es-
tablishing locked gates with forest
guards, destroying key bridges) that
prevent forest colonization? Will these
be effective, or will they be so expen-
sive to implement and maintain that
they will be impractical? If imple-
mented, does the political will exist
in developing countries to ensure
that initiatives to reduce invasions
are actually enforced?
The simple truth is that, unless
hunting pressure is severe, most wild-
life populations can persist in logged
forests, although their abundances
may be reduced for considerable
periods ( Johns 1997; Fimbel et al.
2000). Few forest species can sur-
vive, however, in the mosaic of farm-
land and degraded scrub that remains
after large-scale forest invasion. In my
view, the invasion issue lies at the
heart of the tropical logging debate.
Without practical solutions to limit
invasions, logging will continue to
pose a major, if indirect, threat to the
survival of tropical forests.
William F. Laurance
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apar-
tado 2072, Balboa, Republic of Panamá, and Bio-
logical Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project,
National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA),
C.P. 478, Manaus, AM 69011–970, Brazil, email
wfl@inpa.gov.br
Literature Cited
Bennett, E. L. 2000. Timber certification:
where is the voice of the biologist? Con-
servation Biology 14:921–923.
Bowles, I. A., R. E. Rice, R. A. Mittermeier,
and G. A. B. da Fonseca. 1998. Logging
and tropical forest conservation. Science
280:1899–1900.
Cochrane, M. A.., A. Alencar, M. D. Schulze,
C. M. Souza, D. C. Nepstad, P. Lefebvre,
and E. Davidson. 1999. Positive feedbacks
in the fire dynamics of closed canopy
tropical forests. Science 284:1832–1835.
Fimbel, R. A., A. Grajal, and J. G. Robinson
(editors). 2000. Conserving wildlife in man-
aged tropical forests. Columbia University
Press, New York.
Frumhoff, P. C., and E. C. Losos. 1998. Setting
priorities for conserving biological diver-
Letters 5
sity in tropical timber production forests.
Center for Tropical Forest Science, Smith-
sonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Gascon, C., R. Mesquita, and N. Higuchi.
1998. Logging on in the rain forests. Sci-
ence 281:1453.
Johns, A. G. 1997. Timber production and
biodiversity conservation in tropical rain
forests. Cambridge University Press, Cam-
bridge, United Kingdom.
Kaimowitz, D., and A. Angelsen. 1998. Eco-
nomic models of tropical deforestation: a
review. Center for International Forestry
Research, Bogor, Indonesia.
Laurance, W. F. 1998. A crisis in the making:
responses of Amazonian forests to land
use and climate change. Trends in Ecology
and Evolution 13:411–415.
Laurance, W. F. 1999. Reflections on the trop-
ical deforestation crisis. Biological Conser-
vation 91:109–117.
Nepstad, D. C., A. Verissimo, A. Alencar, C.
Nobre, E. Lima, P. Lefebre, P. Schlesinger,
C. Potter, P. Moutinho, E. Mendoza, M.
Cochrane, and V. Brooks. 1999. Large-
scale impoverishment of Amazonian for-
ests by logging and fire. Nature 398:
505–508.
Putz, F. E., D. P. Dykstra, and R. Heinrich.
2000. Why poor logging practices persist
in the tropics. Conservation Biology 14:
951–956.
Rice, R. E., R. E. Gullison, and J. W. Reid. 1997.
Can sustainable management save tropical
forests? Scientific American 276:44–49.
Sizer, N., and D. Plouvier. 2000. Increased in-
vestment and trade by transnational log-
ging companies in Africa, the Caribbean
and the Pacific. Joint report of World
Wide Fund for Nature–Belgium, World Re-
sources Institute, Washington, D.C., and
World Wide Fund for Nature–International,
Washington, D.C.
Whitmore, T. C. 1997. Tropical forest distur-
bance, disappearance, and species loss.
Pages 3–12 in W. F. Laurance and R. O.
Bierregaard, editors. Tropical forest rem-
nants: ecology, management, and conser-
vation of fragmented communities. Uni-
versity of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Wilkie, D. S., J. G. Sidle, and G. C. Boundzanga.
1992. Mechanized logging, market hunt-
ing, and a bank loan in Congo. Conserva-
tion Biology 6:570–580.
Conservation Biology
Volume 15, No. 1, February 2001